


Dearest Velda

by atamascolily



Category: The Adventures of Sinbad (TV)
Genre: Canon events from a different perspective, Epistolary, Gen, SCIENCE!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-09-22
Packaged: 2019-01-04 03:03:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12160218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atamascolily/pseuds/atamascolily
Summary: After leaving Scroff following the events of "A City Under Plague", Firouz writes a letter to his science correspondent/fellow healer/love interest Velda, narrating the crew's adventures in the lost Roman colony of Hitreea (for science, of course).AKA Sinbad episode 2x14, "The Empress," from Firouz's perspective.





	Dearest Velda

**Author's Note:**

> Since Firouz and Velda have a thriving correspondence/long-distance relationship according to "A City Under Plague," I found myself wondering what those letters might look like.... 
> 
> Or, an attempt to get inside Firouz's head and wonder just how the events of the series might look like under his scientific and rational mind....

_Dearest Velda,_

_So wonderful - amazing, really - to spend so much time together in Scroff a few weeks ago, even if it was so politically turbulent on occasion. I am relieved we were able to rescue you from prison BEFORE you suffered any harm, and save the poor people of Scroff from the "plague" inflicted upon them by your ruler's misguided brother.... As I have written frequently - and you have now had a chance to observe for yourself - although my crewmates are often dismissive of the achievements of science and the delights of logic and reason, their hearts are in the right place and they are truly accomplished at delivering justice and restoring everything to right when they encounter darkness in the world. You see now why an adventurer such as myself feels at home in this grouping! I am so grateful for the opportunity to see the world and apply my inventions, often in the most unusual circumstances._

_I regret that we could not stay longer, but you know how Sinbad is - always impatient to catch the next tide. Indeed, we stayed in Scroff longer than almost anywhere else in recent memory - a testament to how much Scroff appeals to him. Sinbad tells me we shall return to Scroff fairly often, as it is now one of his favorite ports, and make it a part of our wider circuit. Unusually for Sinbad, he did not find any female companionship while we were in Scroff (as is the case for the ports we most frequently re-visit), so I am certain this change is due to the exquisite hospitality of the good people of Scroff, and a testatment to how much our experiences there moved him...._

_Though I relish the serendipity and spontaneity of this wandering life, know that with all my heart it pained me to leave you behind and I think of you constantly. As I have said, my companions have their strengths and talents, but, sadly, appreciation for the scientific arts and its finer details, are not one of them... No one here appreciated my experiments to grow that most interesting mold we discussed while in Scroff - the one Sarinisis writes might be used to treat infections. In fact, Doubar railed at me for wasting perfectly good food and Sinbad ordered me to throw it out! Rongar was sympathetic to my arguments, but the two of us were ultimately overruled by the captain's orders. So it goes in the nautical life, I am afraid. Once I have perfected the cure, perhaps my fellows will be more receptive to my experiments._

_I meant to write this letter earlier, and it will likely be some weeks before we return to our next port, and longer still before I can find someone sailing to Scroff to deliver this letter to you. However, life has been far from ordinary since we departed Scroff, in ways I am sure you will find of great interest._

_First, we sailed to Tyre, where we encountered a most unusual scholar, intent on finding the lost Roman colony of Hitreea, based on a detailed map he had stumbled across in an antique bookseller in a marketplace in Marrakesh, of all places, at great personal cost. I admit, I encouraged Sinbad at great length to accept Tanna's offer, as opportunities such as this to explore one of history's greatest mysteries don't turn up every day! In the end, Sinbad agreed to transport him in exchange for half of any treasure we might find, Sinbad agreed to transport him to the alleged location of said colony._

_Tanna's map lead us without incident to the island of Claxis, home to the legendary Roman colony of Hitreea. As you likely already know, given your study of history, it was most unusual among their settlements, in large part because it was lead by a woman, the eponymous Hitreea, who was rumored to have studied the Egyptian magical arts, although she was not herself Egyptian. According to legend, her mastery of these arts lead to her discovery of eternal youth, and she was known by many as "the Immortal One". The historical records claim she used these abilities to preserve the colony untouched by the outside world through the fall of the Roman Empire and into the present day. The exact extent of her abilities remains unclear to me, but we were attacked almost immediately by soldiers dressed in traditional Roman gear, and some mysterious force grabbed a hold of our ship, so that the sails refused to unfurl when Doubar pulled on the ropes. (I have often suspected that most of what is commonly referred to as "magic" is actually a manipulation of existing natural laws, but as of yet I have not been able to persuade any magic-users to submit to my experiments to prove it. Nevertheless, based on my work with falling metals of various densities and comparing it to that of feathers, I am convinced that this principle was definitely at work here.) So, unable to depart, we set off on a journey based on Tanna's map and discover the truth of the Hitreea colony ourselves._

_The scholar, Tanna, also carried a most unusual knife, with a man and a woman carved in bronze at the base of the hilt. Said to have mysterious powers, legend claims that this knife was used by Hitreea to kill her unfaithful lover Lucius and his mistress in a particularly messy and melodramatic fashion. Tanna explained he had chosen to hire Sinbad not only on account of our considerable skill and reputation, but because the male image on the knife bore a remarkable resemblance to Sinbad (as I visually confirmed when he showed it to me)! It seemed that somehow, destiny was at work, as it often is with Sinbad. Sometimes, I feel so weak and ineffectual, given Sinbad's considerable talents, but as you have pointed out to me many times (most recently during my visit to Scroff), we each have to embrace who and what we most truly are. Sinbad is a hero, and I am an inventor and healer, a talented physician. Indeed, my skills are part of what make Sinbad such a highly effective fighter, particularly in regard to my exploding sticks and other projectile weaponry!_

_Once ashore on Claxis, our first obstacle was to cross a vast lake on a makeshift raft. Fortunately, the lake was fairly shallow, but it was also home to vast numbers of a creature as-yet unknown to science - large, yellow, snake-like, with the ability to generate a charge not unlike lightning through its sharp, needle-like teeth. The creatures swarmed us in a huge school and threatened to sink us down underneath the water where we would be easy prey. We beat at them with our swords, but, being metal, these were more effective at transmitting the charges to us than the wood of our raft. Fortunately, the shock jolted Bryn's magical abilities, which usually lie dormant except under great stress, and she was able to create a water tornado that sucked the creatures away from us. A pity, because I would have liked to take one or two bodies back to the ship to study - as I have said, I believe these creatures have never been formally studied. I have settled for writing up a more detailed account of my observations, complete with sketches, which I have attached to this letter for your perusal. I have also sent copies to the great anatomist Clausius in Alexandria for inclusion in his great Bestiary of the Mediterranean and to several other scholars in the region who may also be interested in this discovery._

_In our attempts to find the secret entrance into the Hitreean colony - in what I suspected to be the mouth of a dormant volcano, similar to Mount Etna or Vesuivius. Before we could do so, however, we were ambushed by more soldiers in Roman garb. Although they were intent on killing us, their presence was proof that we were on the right track and a testament to accuracy of Tanna's map. Sinbad left me to guard Tanna, who had little fighting experience, by myself, but I was ambushed by a surprise attack from the guards and things would likely have gone poorly for both of us had Sinbad not intervened just in the nick of time. Poor Tanna was so shocked by the violence he'd witnessed, but I am afraid I have grown used to such inconveniences as one of the prices of the life of adventure._

_We did, however, eventually locate the entrance to a tunnel beneath the volcano, where we encountered a Roman centurion who had been waiting for us. He led us through a dizzying maze of pathways, which I marked as we traveled, and we escaped to safety just in the nick of time when a stream of fire blew through the tunnels we had only just vacated. Apparently, this is a protective mechanism designed to keep intruders from reaching the Hitreean colony. Another, as we discovered, was a giant who sat next to a vast pile of human skulls (a rather overdramatic decor, if you ask me), but Sinbad was able to defeat him easily and we were acceped without further ado into the underground Hitreean colony._

_Well. Whatever I may write about the splendor of the Empress Hitreea's throne room, please rest assured it comes nowhere close to the reality. It looked like the murals and mosaics of Ancient Rome come to life, with an equally Egyptian flare. The Empress herself sat on a burnished throne, her face veiled, but with none of the signs of her advanced age. Had I not known the history, I would have thought her forty at most, and a decidedly youthful forty at that. She wanted a private audience with Sinbad and directed the rest of us to a courtyard where we were entertained by musicians and dancers, with slaves bearing huge platters of delicacies and amphorae of wine, with no possible comfort denied to us._

_We didn't think anything was wrong at first - rulers always want to speak to Sinbad and he is, as you know, very persuasive, especially when beautiful women are involved. But Bryn came in, warning us that Hitreea planned a trap for Sinbad, to hold him in bondage against his will, and abruptly I realized that the mysterious scent and taste in our overflowing goblets of wine was poppy-juice - the powerful sleep-inducer. Immediately, I informed the crew of the treachery I had detected - fortunately, only Doubar had drunk any of the poisoned wine in quantity. Rather than attempt the traditional emetic remedies typically used in these cases, I encouraged Doubar to eat more food to balance the drugs' effects. Happily, this decidedly unorthodox strategy succeeded with less mess and more joy on Doubar's part, though it is often ridiculed by others in the medicial profession._

_We were, as is too often the case, forced to fight our way out. Hitreea had drugged Sinbad, so he wandered in a daze, until Bryn and Tanna intervened to save him. In the ensuing struggle, Tanna used his golden knife to stab Hitreea; it turned out that this was the only weapon that could have possibly have damaged the empress, who had magically shielded herself against any other attack. Furthermore, according to Hitreea as she lay dying on the floor, only the reincarnation of her unfaithful lover, Lucius, could have killed her, even with the knife in question. Tanna, Hitreea and I had all believed that Sinbad bore a striking resemblance to Lucius, but it turns out that Tanna did, even more so - we had all been so struck by Sinbad's chivalrous nature and outgoing personality that none of us had been able to see what was right in front of our faces the whole time. The moral of the story is clear: as a scientist, we must observe the evidence that is in front of us and construct a story that fits that evidence rather than trying to piece it into a pre-existing story._

_Rather than embrace her long-lost lover, now restored to her under the most unexpected of circumstances, Hitreea killed him herself before engulfing the whole colony in flames in a dramatic suicide pyre. Fortunately for us, we were able to escape without injury and reach the surface again before the entire hillside exploded in a particularly dramatic fashion. Whatever else you might say about the Immortal Empress, she certainly knew how to make an exit._

_Though we were successful in locating the hidden Hitreean colony, this voyage was not particularly profitable. We were forced to leave in such a hurry that the only treasure we were able to take back was a goblet I hastily stuffed into my pocket after it was clear that the need for flight was urgent. Upon our return to Tyre, we were able to sell this priceless Roman goblet from the lost Hitreean colony to a wealthy collector for a sufficiently large sum to pay off the costs of our entire expedition, with a tidy profit for everyone on the side. Sinbad graciously offered me an additional share of the profits due to my quick-thicking, which I used to purchase additional materials for the new pumping device I am working on to help bail the ship in the strongest storms - and also good quality parchment, paper and inks so that I may continue to write to you (the ground lapis lazuli for my drawings was particularly costly and I would not have been able to afford it without Sinbad's kind intervention. Nothing else comes close to that heavenly blue). I am also glad to be able to set the historical record straight - even if my account of the true fate of the lost Hitreean colony is not believed by the scholars of Alexandria, at least the true story will be out there at last._

_Under the circumstances, I hope you will understand why my correspondence has been delayed - please rest assure that my silence is by no means personal and I look forward to your next letter with great eagerness. Please have it sent to the town of Sarabinne, as we will be going there in a few weeks to celebrate the harvest festival of the Great Gryphon, which all of the crew is greatly looking forward to...although for drastically different reasons, I suspect._

_I have also attached a few geometrical musings on some propositions of Euclid, as well as a handful of pressed specimens and my notes on their uses in herbal poultices that you may find of particular interest in your own practice in Scroff._

_I remain your deep and abiding partner in the fine practice of science and medicine,_

_Firouz_


End file.
